The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1887-11-21

yeaied in the lips. The tablets as sad were
found in a small wooden box. which had be-
come so carboniZed By time gnat IL soon went to
pisces The tablets themselves, too, were all
carbonized and black charcoal. and the
purnmice stone which fell upon the box that
contained them had. evidently, been sufficiently
hot at the period of the destruction of Pompeii
to melt the wax and cause it to be absorbed In
tho wood. the pressure, however, OF the
stylus when the writing was first made was felt
through the wax. and LETT its Impression IN
scratchings on the wood, and thus 1t is that
number of the tablets have been
read, wholly or in part They are
interesting reading in certain respects, showing
that the old fellow, who was a lender of money,
usually took. his lowest per cent, 2 per
cent. a month. Some of the receipts we're writ
ten in &C. A D.. and some in 81, A. d. This
was just about the time when the circumstances
narrated in Chapter XIX of the Acts of the A pos
ties took place. We know the exact date of the
old usurers Jucundus's. Receipts because the
Emperor. or the consuls of that date. are
named. viz: II. Marcus Aleius Campus. the
9Th kallends of July, Quintus Vousius Salur-
mnas, being consuls "a. D., SCI acknowledge
having received from Lucius Cacilius Jucundus
1856 sesrerces, the amount increase by me
the contract stipulated by him. Done at
Pompeii." The amount of money, If we trans
late sesterces literally into dollars, would be
little more than $50; but we must remem-
Der that one dollar at that time was worth ii. g.
would buy) more than ten times that amount
to-day. As | said before old Jucundus loaned
money at a per cent per annum, and left to his
descendants fine house to be destroyed by We
soVluS twenty-five years after the last note 0u0
him had come IN.
Bat last month another discovery was made,
which has some interest for US. Americans.
The excavators came across some fine
pieces of silver plate, some beautiful glazed
Samian ware 1.-THE ancients had glaze), beauti-
full land in a vigorous styse) statue of dancing
faun marble, half the size of liiel. and several
tablets. The latter had not been protected by a
box. as those Of 1875. and the greater portion of
them soon went to pieces. But one was in a
toierabe state OF preservation and has been de-
ciphered It Is q contract for delivering so
many slaves on a certain date, to be paid for on
the forum of Pompeii. / confess took great
interest in watching the laying before modern
ages a contract which is more than ], 800 years
old, and to note some things which will cause
Americans of forty years of age to recall certain
things of country "befo' the wah."
the Romans had several words for slaves, but
the most common were ''servi" and ''pueri." The
latter was the term most frequently used of all.
It is exactly the term that was used for slave
"boy"-the Latin is ''puer." Cicero speaks in
one of his orations of slaves from Gaul, and he
says, "E Gallia pueros." And this con-
tract to deliver many slaves in the market of
Pompeii. do not have the words ''servi, or
..famuli." ''mancipia." but simply ''puer"
(boys1, to designate that they were slaves OF the
male sex.
In looking over this letter I find that have
said nothing about the plant 'pspyrus," which
furnished the substance of which the ancient
Egyptian, Greek and Roman manuscripts were
mostly made. 1t is we'll for any encyclopedias
any ordinary dictionary will furnish the
knowledge of that plant, from which is derived
the name of paper" &c FLETCHER